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Chapter 71: Government Turns Around, The Arrogant Loki
🕑 Added 2025-03-13 18:16:13 +0000 UTC"Pierce, what are you doing?"
Nick Fury called Alexander Pierce directly.
Even though Pierce was the former SHIELD Director, the current Security Council President, and the mentor who had promoted Fury to the top position, Fury still felt the need to confront him regarding SHIELD's current situation.
"Fury, what are you talking about?" Pierce replied, feigning ignorance.
"New Mexico, Hammer!" Fury shot back.
Having dealt with politicians for a long time, Fury understood their nature, so he emphasized the matter, "According to the division of responsibilities, we should be handling supernatural events. Why are you letting the military intervene?"
"Fury! Yes, SHIELD should be in charge of these things, but what did you do? You allowed a group of mutants to make contact first. Do you know what the other council members are saying? They're starting to doubt your position!"
"You should be aware that mutants and we do not see eye to eye. They think they are the next stage of human evolution, and they believe they should dominate human society. Especially with the series of terrorist attacks by Magneto that brought significant hidden dangers to social security. People can't stand the thought of mutants replacing us to make contact with aliens. If taxpayers find out what you've done, the government's credibility will be questioned!"
Alexander Pierce spoke with sincerity, believing that he had Fury under his control.
"Professor X has communicated with us multiple times, and they need SHIELD. Let them handle the contact to reduce our casualties!" Fury did not doubt Pierce’s words.
The primary operation was led by the military, and Fury, knowing their temperament, understood why they acted this way. However, according to intelligence, besides the military, two agents from the Shenbi Bureau were also involved.
Fury had not been informed beforehand, which was intolerable to him.
His suspicions about his own control within SHIELD began to surface. There were people with outside influences within the organization who couldn't be controlled.
"Fury, I understand your concerns, but I'm not alone in the International Security Council. You know who they are, and they are very critical of us handling supernatural events. I'll explain things to them, but next time, please don't do something reckless like this. At least, let SHIELD handle it directly so I can control the flow of information."
Pierce's tone remained calm, but his expression held a deeper meaning. As long as SHIELD was involved, he could ensure he received all the details of the operation. Unlike the unconnected X-Men acting as they did this time, Pierce could control the flow of information.
"I understand," Fury replied, his voice laced with frustration. He was not satisfied with this response.
If it weren't for the interference from the Security Council, how could there have been conflicts? In the end, it was all his problem.
Was it a problem to minimize sacrifices and the costs for taxpayers and the country?
Fury wasn't worried about Charles hiding anything from him. After all, the X-Men needed SHIELD’s support, especially since things were looking increasingly bad for mutants.
Recently, more voices of dissatisfaction with them were growing, and many neutral parties were beginning to side with the opposition. SHIELD was the only organization with the political clout to back the mutants.
"Hope there's good news from Charles..."
"Fury, the aliens don’t seem to be friendly. The negotiating team we sent has lost contact. The Security Council is very dissatisfied with this performance. I can help you manage things here, but you need to come up with a plan soon, along with a detailed report. Otherwise, I fear they may take more aggressive actions."
Pierce hung up the phone and leaned back in his chair, grinning.
"Fury, you’re still too young! So what if you’re sitting in that seat? You're still under my control. After all, I’m your mentor!"
Meanwhile, on the other side, Aaron and the group had wiped out the military’s "negotiation" team, leaving everyone in shock.
They hadn’t expected these so-called Asgardians to react so violently at the slightest provocation. They killed everyone without hesitation! Wouldn’t this provoke a war between the two sides?
Ororo warned, "If you continue like this, it may provoke an overreaction. I’m afraid they won’t let this slide."
Aaron simply shook his head, chuckling. Sif and the three warriors exchanged glances and smiled. Thor, without hesitation, declared, "Midgardians, Asgard is the ruler of the Nine Realms! We are not afraid of any challenge or war!"
"We have defeated the tyrannical frost titans, the flame titans from the demon realm, and the dark elves who control the darkness!" Thor continued confidently. "You can't even imagine the strength of Asgard!"
"When we ruled the Nine Realms, Midgard was in its infancy, praying to us for aid. If your nation dares to go to war with us, we will accept it!"
"You should pass this message to those behind you—let them not get too 'brave' in this matter, as it will be pointless!"
"Cut! Who can’t brag?" Logan muttered, clearly unimpressed. Despite not having much affection for society or the country, he found Thor’s arrogant words hard to stomach.
Ororo and Scott also frowned. The Asgardians' dismissive attitude toward humanity was hard to ignore.
As the conversation continued, Jane was still observing the group from the hillside with a telescope. She had been there since Thor’s arrival. After her assistant Daisy sent her some information about Asgard myths, Jane had started believing Thor’s claims.
She couldn’t understand, though, how Thor, who resembled the Thor from mythology, seemed so conceited and weak—he couldn’t even lift his own hammer!
Later, she called Dr. Eric to inform him of the situation. When she saw the three warriors and Aaron descend, she was left speechless.
Her worldview had just been turned upside down.
At that moment, she froze when she realized that the last person who had descended—Aaron—turned to look directly at her.
Thor, noticing Jane, waved and called to her.
"Jane, over there. She’s the first person I met when I came to Midgard. I think she’s an astronomer. Oops!" Thor realized he had forgotten to return some information he promised her.
Despite his embarrassment, Thor waved again, signaling her to come down.
After some hesitation, Jane ran down the hill, clearly in awe. She observed Aaron closely, fascinated by his performance earlier.
"Jane Foster," Thor introduced her to the group. "This is the new generation of the God of Magic in our realm. The previous God of Magic was my father, Gong."
Aaron nodded, and Thor apologized again to Jane for the awkward situation.
Jane remained silent, still processing everything she had seen.
Meanwhile, Charles had finally regained consciousness, and his reaction was unexpected.
"Professor!" Jean and Ororo both exclaimed.
"I'm fine!" Charles said after a deep breath, his gaze focused on the shock he had just witnessed.
"I saw Muspelheim in flames and Jotunheim covered in ice and snow. It was the most shocking experience of my life. But then, when your patron god took me to visit other places in the Nine Realms, the contact was suddenly cut off. It felt urgent. Should we reach out to him?"
Thor considered this and suggested, "Heimdall, the patron of the Bifrost, may have been interrupted when my father woke up. Don't worry about it."
Charles nodded. As a telepath, he knew what he had seen was real. He realized it could only be explained by the existence of gods.
After some discussion, it was decided that Jean would be taken to Asgard, where she could better control the power within her. Aaron had assured everyone that he would handle the situation with the Phoenix.
Loki, meanwhile, was still in Asgard, where he had declared himself the ruler of the Nine Realms.
"How did you bring the Jotun titan into Asgard?" Heimdall asked, eyeing Loki.
Loki smiled, "Do you think Bifrost is the only way in and out of Asgard? The Nine Realms are connected by the World Tree, with many secret passages. Even you couldn’t see everything."
"From now on, I won’t need those secret ways. I am the king, the Lord of the Nine Realms!"
"And you, Heimdall, you’re no longer a warrior of Asgard. I hereby strip you of your role and make you Bifrost."
Heimdall, who had never been fond of Loki, now had to endure his rival’s triumph.
